The aim of this research is to introduce the concept of irony and hyperreality in the metafictional novel entitled Atonement (2001) by contemporary British novelist Ian Russell McEwan.
Irony is a rhetorical device, an act of speech and a textual effect produced when “the said and the unsaid together make up the third meaning – the ironic meaning,” (Linda Hutcheon, 1994: 60). Various types of irony can be observed in Atonement due to its the complex narrative perspectives and its nature i.e. a metafiction. However, the focus in this study will be on the most noticeable type that is verbal irony. which reflects on the protagonists’ interpersonal relationships, their attitudes towards each other. The analysis focuses on the postmodern concept of irony in Atonement.
In her book entitled Metafiction: The Theory and Practice of Self-Conscious Fiction (1984) …show more content…
Methodology
This thesis will consist of three chapters; each will provide answers to the previous questions.
The first chapter entitled Irony in Atonement will be concerned with revealing the existing irony in Ian McEwan’s Atonement. the function of irony is defined and recognised in the novel and its effect on the reader. verbal, situational or cosmic irony can be observed in Atonement due to its the complex narrative perspectives and its nature i.e. a metafiction. However, the focus in this study will be on the most noticeable type that is verbal irony.
The second chapter entitled Atonement: A Metafiction? Exploring the Question of Reality and Fictionality. In this chapter we shall explain how Atonement functions as metafiction and examine the metafictional elements within it relying on Patricia Waugh’s theory on metafiction. The term metafiction applies perfectly to McEwan’s work especially in the last part of the novel when he reveals that Briony, the protagonist, is the author. By doing so, he highlights the notion of constructed reality and thus pushes the reader to question the reality within the
Irony is a rhetorical device, an act of speech and a textual effect produced when “the said and the unsaid together make up the third meaning – the ironic meaning,” (Linda Hutcheon, 1994: 60). Various types of irony can be observed in Atonement due to its the complex narrative perspectives and its nature i.e. a metafiction. However, the focus in this study will be on the most noticeable type that is verbal irony. which reflects on the protagonists’ interpersonal relationships, their attitudes towards each other. The analysis focuses on the postmodern concept of irony in Atonement.
In her book entitled Metafiction: The Theory and Practice of Self-Conscious Fiction (1984) …show more content…
Methodology
This thesis will consist of three chapters; each will provide answers to the previous questions.
The first chapter entitled Irony in Atonement will be concerned with revealing the existing irony in Ian McEwan’s Atonement. the function of irony is defined and recognised in the novel and its effect on the reader. verbal, situational or cosmic irony can be observed in Atonement due to its the complex narrative perspectives and its nature i.e. a metafiction. However, the focus in this study will be on the most noticeable type that is verbal irony.
The second chapter entitled Atonement: A Metafiction? Exploring the Question of Reality and Fictionality. In this chapter we shall explain how Atonement functions as metafiction and examine the metafictional elements within it relying on Patricia Waugh’s theory on metafiction. The term metafiction applies perfectly to McEwan’s work especially in the last part of the novel when he reveals that Briony, the protagonist, is the author. By doing so, he highlights the notion of constructed reality and thus pushes the reader to question the reality within the